The Salish language family : reconstructing syntax

Book

The Salish language family : reconstructing syntax / Paul D. Kroeber.

Summary:

"In this pioneering study Paul D. Kroeber examines the history of an array of important syntactic constructions in the Salish language family. This group of some twenty-three languages, centrally located in the Northwest Coast and Plateau Regions, is noted for its intriguing differences from European languages, including the possible irrelevance of a noun/verb distinction to grammatical structure and the existence of distinctive systems of articles, which also often function as marks of subordination." "Kroeber draws on and analyzes data from a wide range of textual and other sources. Centering his detailed investigation on patterns of subordination and focusing, he situates these against the broader background of Salish syntax, examines their interrelationships, and reconstructs their historical development."--Jacket.

Record details

ISBN: 080322740X
ISBN: 9780803227408
Physical Description: xviii, 461 pages : map ; 24 cm.
Publisher: Lincoln : University of Nebraska Press in cooperation with the American Indian Studies Research Institute, Indiana University, Bloomington, �1999.

Content descriptions

Bibliography, etc. Note:: Includes bibliographical references (pages 433-447) and indexes.
Formatted Contents Note:: Map. The Salish family and neighboring languages -- 1. Introduction and background -- 2. Complement and adverbial clauses: Parameters of form -- 3. Functional types of complement and adverbial clause -- 4. Morphosyntax of relativization: Preliminaries -- 5. Relativization of direct participants -- 6. Relativization of obliques -- 7. Clefts and other fronting constructions -- 8. Areal perspectives.